Zwei833's German (Real and Alternate)History Civs

The Empire of the German Nation (German: Reich Deutscher Nation, Polish: Imperium Narodu Niemieckiego, Czech: Říše německého národa) is the official successor state to the German Confederation, but in a larger political sense, the Kingdoms of Prussia and Austria. Formed out of German nationalism in the mid-1800's, the superstate finally unified the Germanic peoples under an elective constitutional monarchy, similar to that of the Holy Roman Empire's system of Prince-Electors combined with democratic and libertarian freedoms similar to both Britain and the United States.
The 1848 Revolutions:
On March 21st, 1848, Friedrich Wilhelm IV walked through the streets of Berlin, with some of his Generals and Ministers. Wearing the revolutionary colors of Black-Red-Gold, he went to the cemetery where hundreds of civilians were buried following a riot a few days earlier. With most of kingdom getting ready to descend into chaos (and over half of his General Staff threatening to mutiny) he agreed to the demands of his people, and agreed to arrange the Frankfurt Parliament for the unification of Germany.

Spearheading this movement, was a Prussian statesman and member of the Landtag, Otto von Bismarck. Recently married to Johanna von Puttkamer, devout sister of a fellow statesman, he was young and ambitious, and many felt as though he would become someone great. At the Parliament, his charisma brought many on his side, including the King himself, who had attended one of the meetings.
Frankfurt Parliament (Nat. 1848)

The Frankfurt Parliament during the arrival of the messenger.
However, on October 7, a man dashed into St. Paul's Church with two messages for the King (who had been there that day) and the attendees. Everyone was quieted and the man spoke, sending chills down their spines. A declaration of war from the Kingdom of Denmark, and word that Danish soldiers were taking advantage of the choas and had occupied most of Hannover. And that Hungarian troops had captured Vienna, and that the Austrian Empire had been formally abolished.

With no one else to turn to, the German States all allied with Prussia, and by October 12, Friedrich Wilhelm had accepted the title "Emperor of the Germans", or "Kaiser der Deutschen" and declared war on both Denmark and the new Hungarian Empire.

The Empire of the German Nation had been born.

An Uneasy Unity:
Following the Revolutionary Wars and unification under the newly crowned Kaiser Friedrich Wilhelm I, it was clear that infighting was going to be prevalent, if at least in the beginning. Both Austria and Prussia were creating pacts and deals with the states of the Reich, and each had the unquestioned support of Bohemia and Poznań, respectively.

Prussia had managed to bring the northern states under its sphere, while Austria brought the southern ones into theirs. As tensions began to rise, it also became clear that the more liberal Prussia would be heading the country for a while, with both its König and Premierminister Otto von Bismarck as the two most powerful men in the nation. So, a comprumise was reached in early 1850 by both factions. Alfred I, Prince of Windisch-Grätz, was promoted to the rank of Kaiserlich Feldmarschall (Imperial Field Marshal), giving him direct control of the entire military, usurping Bismarck and second only to the Kaiser himself in military rank.

With a staunch conservative being given the highest German rank, many liberals cried indignantly, pointing out the scandalous backroom deal. In truth, it was one of the only ways Prussia was able to pacify the warhawks of the Austrian population, who were becoming uneasy under a perceived protestant takeover.